● Syphilis epidemic in Auckland continues to cause alarm, call for extra funding to stop spread

With the alarming increase of syphilis cases in South Auckland, Parliament’s health select committee calls for extra funding for primary and sexual health services to stop the spread, NZ Herald reports. In a report released in March as part of the 2019/2020 annual review of the Counties Manukau DHB, 40 percent of syphilis cases in New Zealand were in the Counties Manukau area. Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection which can be treated and cured with antibiotics, but if left untreated, over time it can affect the brain, spinal cord and other organs.